We continue now on this superstorm, and there are big questions tonight about how this storm will affect the race for president now. You saw the president there, had to stop campaigning to meet with fema today. Mitt romney canceling rallies, too. And tonight, the state of maryland, just calling off the first day of early voting tomorrow. And all of this comes as the latest abc news poll shows mitt romney ahead of the president by one point, 49% to 48%. With this race already a dead heat, could hurricane sandy upend this final stretch? Here's abc's senior political correspondent jon karl tonight. Reporter: It's mother nature's october surprise. A storm so big and so destructive, it could throw the campaign's final week into chaos. The storm will throw a little bit of havoc into the race. Reporter: For president obama, it meant canceling two upcoming campaign events and visiting fema headquarters, vowing an immediate response to the storm. We're going to cut through red tape, we're not going to get bogged down with a lot of rules. We want to make sure we are anticipating and leaning forward. Reporter: There are political stakes, too. A chance for the president to show decisive leadership or to take the blame if the response is bungled. All told, 16 campaign events have already been canceled. Mitt romney canceled three in virginia, moving westward to ohio, where he met up with paul ryan. Today, when we get home, put in our prayers the people who are in the east coast, in the wake of this big storm that's coming. Let's not forget those fellow americans of ours. Reporter: With just nine days left, the race is as close as ever. A point dramatized in a new obama ad, reminding voters that the 2000 race was decided by a mere 537 votes in florida. If you're thinking that your vote doesn't count, that it won't matter, well, back then, there were probably at least 537 people who felt the same way. Reporter: And mitt romney has picked up the endorsements of two iowa newspapers that supported obama last time. One that hasn't supported a republican since richard nixon. With the storm coming and the race so tight, both campaigns are trying to bank as many votes as possible in states with early voting. With lines especially long in virginia and maryland. The storm is not shutting down this campaign. Mitt romney is about to have his third campaign event for the day here in ohio and the president will be on the trail tomorrow in florida. And, right back here in ohio. David? Canceling those events in virginia and heading where it matters most. Right there in ohio. Jon karl, thank you.

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